Managing kids, career and home, or any one or combination of the three, is a huge undertaking. So it’s no wonder that most modern day moms would agree that stress plays a role in their daily lives.

As a full-time homemaker, full-time work from home mom, I relate to the struggle that many moms face as they strive to de-stress, when doing so seems like an almost impossible task.

Over the years, I’ve found five surprisingly practical things that have significantly reduced my daily stress levels. These 5 tips include:

Tossing out my alarm clock

A digital alarm clock had been a fixture on my nightstand for as long as I can remember. I’d often find myself unable to fall asleep or fall back to sleep because I knew exactly how much time I had before I needed to get up out of bed. This information sabotaged my sleep. I’d put so much pressure on myself to fall to sleep or fall back to sleep, I wouldn’t be able to. Once I tossed out the alarm clock, the room was darker (no more blue light), I slept longer and better, and I woke up on my own when I needed to.

Shut off the auto alerts

One of the downsides of being a work from home mom that keeps a flex schedule is that most times, you need to be accessible. I had always “pushed” my emails so that my Smartphone would alert me whenever a message came through. When the alert sounded, I felt pressure to read and respond to my emails immediately, regardless of what I was doing. Shutting off the auto alerts allowed me to decide when it was a good time to check and respond to emails, reducing a tremendous amount of stress.

Set aside time to handle business

Everyone I work with knows I am available to talk at length anytime on Mondays or between 11:30 am and 1:00 pm weekdays. Whether it’s before the kids get up, during nap or quiet time or while the kids are at school, having designated “office hours” to handle home or work related business can help ease stress that comes from trying to find time to connect with those I need to.

Keep gifts on hand ahead of time

From birthday parties to baby showers, the invites seem to keep rolling in. Finding time to purchase gifts can be challenging. Having a gift closet filled with assorted gift items definately comes in handy. I keep an assortment of my favorite new baby gifts, birthday gifts and get well gifts so that I always have something on hand. Doing so takes off the stress that can come from trying to squeeze in just one more thing to my day.

Enforce Bedtime

It may not be nice to say, but it’s the truth. I look forward to bedtime. Knowing that my children will be in bed each night at 7:00 pm gives me hope that if I didn’t get a moment to myself or with my husband all day, I soon will.

While we can most all agree that being a mom can be stressful, it can also agree that it is amazingly rewarding and fulfilling. Cutting opportunities for stress to creep into our daily routines is beneficial to us and our families.

Do you have any stress-busting strategies? What do you think of mine? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

With her background as an International Nanny Association Credentialed Nanny specializing in caring for multiples, Michelle has been partnering with parents in raising their children since 1994.

With her extensive experience in newborn, infant and child care, and with her passion for setting herself apart from her peers by providing top-notch service, Michelle is regularly called on by the most popular parenting magazines and websites to share her knowledge and expertise. She has been featured on Parents.com, Parenting.com, and BabyTalk.com and regularly contributes to ModernMom.com, Momtastic.com, and other popular parenting websites.

Michelle has contributed to TWINS Magazine and wrote a chapter for the best-selling Experts' Guide to the Baby Years. Michelle has also authored four books of her own entitled, Nanny to the Rescue!, Nanny to the Rescue Again!, Working Mom's 411 and A Mom's Ultimate Book of Lists. She also co-authored Beyond Parenting Basics: The International Nanny Association’s Official Guide to In-Home Child Care.

Michelle is an active member of the nanny and baby planner communities. In 2004, Michelle was honored as the International Nanny Association Nanny of the Year> and received accolades from President George Bush for her dedication to improving quality in-home child care. Michelle serves on the advisory board of the International Academy of Baby Planner Professionals and has served on the board of directors and as vice president of the International Nanny Association. She has also served as the executive director of the International Nanny Association and as a trainer for The Academy of Coaching Parents International.

Michelle currently serves as the editor in chief of Longhorn Leads, managing the content across their portfolio of care related sites including www.eNannySource.com, www.GoNannies.com, www.NannyPro.com, and www.4Nannies.com, in addition to serving as the executive director of Morningside Nannies, the company’s award-winning placement agency.

Michelle is a national speaker, bringing a message of hope and empowerment to moms groups across the nation. She and her husband Jeff, reside on Cape Cod with their daughter, Abigail, and their son, Luke.